Hartlepool United Academy have had a busy 2025, seeing growth and development both on and off the pitch.

Academy Manager, Alex Cross, spoke on the key focuses within the Academy, whilst emphasising how pleased he has been with the work that has been delivered by the staff and players.

Cross commented: “Being in the job over a year now, the structure and the stability of the Academy is something I am absolutely delighted with.

“That is testament to all the staff and players I have the pleasure of working with on a daily basis, their commitment and drive to progress enables us to have an environment where everyone can thrive.”

The Club lost its EFL funding at the end of the 2024/25 season after being out of the Football League for two seasons.

The focus was on ensuring that there was financial stability whilst enabling a pathway that could help aid player development.

“We were in a precarious position with the EFL funding coming to an end.

“It was important that we safeguard the academy long-term from a financial perspective whilst being able to offer a wide range of academic opportunities for our players.

“Our partnership with Hartlepool Sixth Form College has done exactly that.

“We have a long-term agreement that has enabled the academy to structure the student-athletes’ offering with full-time football accompanied by a broad academic offering across numerous subjects.”

Cross went on to speak about the Club’s pathway, commenting on the transitional structure that is now in place: “We now have a robust pathway that offers alignment throughout the academy, with the U16s, Shadow Youth Team, U17s Youth Team and U19s Youth Team.

“This allows us to progress players through at the right time for their individual development.

“We have seen players play up from their age group whilst seeing players making progress within the groups they are in, which is a credit to all the staff in all departments, whether that be coaching, medical, sports science, analysis and recruitment, everyone has played their part.”

Cross added further information on the future of the Academy: “There definitely needs to be a change for National League Clubs with Academies.

“At the start of the season, we lost two players to Doncaster Rovers, one of whom has now signed a professional contract, without any compensation.

“Clubs can come and take players that we have recruited and developed with just a 7 days’ notice.

“Whilst the 3UP campaign is important, there are Academies across the National League doing fantastic work and losing players to Clubs higher up the pyramid.

“Whilst the progress for players is great, it negatively impacts the academies that are developing the talented individuals; this needs addressing.

“Moving forward, we will continue to grow the academy structure, with the potential of adding further opportunities within the pathway that we have currently, whilst exploring female football.

“It is mightily important that patience with players is at the forefront of our minds. We have seen significant development over a short period of time with many players within the Academy, we will continue to focus on the medium to long-term development of the individuals that we work closely with.

“Collectively, we are moving in the right direction, and I look forward to seeing what the next 12 months will bring.”

To contribute to our Academy, you can do so by signing up to Goldline by emailing accounts@hartlepoolunited.co.uk.

To keep up to date with the academy, you can follow the following social media accounts:

Twitter: @Pools_Academy Facebook: Hartlepool United Academy Instagram: @pools_academy

Any academy-based questions or interest, please email academy@hartlepoolunited.co.uk.